Geek Fest -- & FREE STUFF -- coming to CPCC next week

CPCC's third annual Geek Fest kicks off Wednesday, Sept. 6, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at CPCC's Levine Campus in Matthews.

The school says the festival will feature "cutting-edge industry, media, gadgets, hardware, software, services, innovations, education," plus vendor demonstrations, guest speakers, webcasts, video game tournaments, music, contests.

The school says, most importantly, there will be lots of FREE STUFF.

Student-focused content and activities run from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m. Professional focused content and activities will be from 1-4 p.m.

At 1 p.m., keynote speaker Dr. Mark Benno, Education Development Executive with Apple Computer, will address the topic, “The Digital Age: Teaching and Learning for Tomorrow Today.” Benno will discuss skills students need in today’s digital workplace.

Of course, there'll be plenty of information on CPCC programs that can help the "regular people" learn more about technology, including automotive technology, music, computer programming, simulation and game development, engineering, eLearning, and more.

Participants can register to win big prizes including three Apple iPods, two Macromedia Adobe Studio 8 programs, games and software, gift certificates, free CPCC corporate and continuing education courses, shirts, gaming competitions and more.

NOTES

-- Aquaman has joined the characters on the upcoming Justice League Heroes video game. He joins Batman, Superman, Wonder Woman, The Flash, Green Lantern, Martian Manhunter, Zatanna and the previously announced unlockable Green Arrow. JLH will arrive in Fall 2006 for the PS2, Xbox, PSP, GBA and DS.

Aquaman will aid his fellow Justice Leaguers in the fight to stop Brainiac and his evil forces, including Killer Frost and The Key, and restore peace to the world.

Ready, set, go: Create games

Microsoft has released the first public beta of its XNA Game Studio Express I told you about yesterday.

The software allows anyone to create videogames for XBox 360 and the Windows PC environments.

Novice game creators can download the tool today at no charge. The games built on Windows PCs can be migrated to the Xbox 360 console system starting this holiday season as part of the XNA Creators Club subscription for $99 a year, or a four-month trial cost of $49, opening up retail console game development to anyone for the first time.

Already, more than 100 schools have requested information on how they can incorporate XNA Game Studio Express into their curricula, including Southern Methodist University’s Guildhall and the University of Southern California’s GamePipe, Microsoft announced additional support from DigiPen Institute of Technology in Redmond, Washington, a leader in the field of digital interactive entertainment education.

Through its ProjectFUN software running on XNA Game Studio Express and summer workshops starting in 2007, DigiPen will bring Xbox 360 console game development for the first time ever to thousands of children ages 10 through 16.

“XNA Game Studio Express is an incredibly accessible tool for making games for Microsoft’s game platforms and will provide our university students with modern tools and console development experience,” said Claude Comair, founder and chairman of the board at DigiPen Institute of Technology. “And now with our ProjectFun for XNA Game Studio Express, we’re eager to extend our educational offerings on Windows and Xbox 360 to include young children.”

The final version of XNA Game Studio Express launches in time for Christmas with a professional version launching in spring 2007.

NOTES
-- Ubisoft has announced release of Brothers In Arms D-Day, a World War II squad-based action game developed specifically for the PSP system. Players will experience the intensity of WWII through the stories of Sergeants Baker and Hartsock and their squad of paratroopers during the Normandy invasion.

-- Gamer’s Gate announced release of Bad day L.A, a cinematic satire that plays off the “fear culture” of modern America by plunging players into a storyline where the city of Los Angeles is barraged with disasters. The game combines comedy, chaos management gameplay, a unique art style created by Kozyndan, an over-the-top ironic story and a cast of characters that find themselves in goofy, often surreal missions.

-- Capcom's Dead Rising, the company’s first game for Xbox 360, has shipped more than 500,000 units within the first two weeks of its launch. Dead Rising is an M-rated, action horror game that follows the harrowing tale of Frank West, an overly zealous freelance photojournalist in pursuit of the story of a lifetime. What he finds is a small suburban town completely overrun by zombies. He seeks refuge in the local shopping mall, but soon learns it is far from the safe haven he had thought.

-- Konami has shipped Bomberman: Act Zero for the Xbox 360. In the game, players are challenged to survive through 99 stages as they try to escape an experimental underground facility and destroy their opponents to fight for survival in a terrifying industrial future. Zero features a breakthrough “FPB” (First Person Bomber) mode that gives players complete control over the camera, allowing for a tight over the shoulder view of the action or a birds-eye perspective of the entire battlefield.

-- The latest official Oblivion plug-in, Spell Tomes, will be available for download on Xbox Live and at OblivionDownloads.com Thursday.

Want to design videogames for Microsoft?

You've been around the pool, at the mall, or in your best friend's living room -- spanking him in Halo -- and you've thought, "I can design a game this good."

I know you have, or at least some of you have (judging from my emails).

Now, Microsoft has created a way for you to create your own XBox 360 or PC titles with its new XNA Game Studio Express. The company says it will "democratize game development by delivering the necessary tools to hobbyists, students, indie developers and studios alike to help them bring their creative game ideas to life while nurturing game development talent, collaboration and sharing that will benefit the entire industry."

Sounds interesting.

The development tools drop in time for Christmas and will be free to anyone with a Windows-based PC.

By joining a "creators club" for an annual subscription fee of $99, users will be able to build, test and share 360 games and download materials to speed up the development process.

The XNA Game Studio Express beta will be available Aug. 30 as a free download on Windows XP, for development on the Windows XP platform.

Of course, there's always the chance that you'll create the next big thing and your title will be bought by Microsoft. I think it's a good move that -- like American Idol -- may deliver some new stars from unexpected places. Better yet, it may give us the groundbreaking games we've craved as well as present some new ideas to make current games better.

NOTES
-- Cincinnati Bengals wide receiver Chad Johnson is the cover boy for EA Sports' upcoming NFL Street 3, due in November.

“This is a big honor to be selected for the cover since street football was the first step to learning our moves for our pro careers,” said Johnson, now sporting a blonde mohawk. “I really like this game and it is so much fun to play with all the new airborne moves you can do now.”

Johnson, a member of the Bengals since 2001, is widely regarded as one of NFL’s elite wideouts, leading the AFC in receptions and receiving yards in 2005-06 and has earned three straight Pro Bowl selections.

In the new game, players can now jump into the air to collect items and game modifiers that exist above the playing field which can change the way the game is played. Once airborne, players can pull off style moves that rack up even more points. Also new to the game is the ability to control the Gamebreakers and pull off extreme power moves that are available to both the offense and the defense.

-- The technology Paris Hilton used to instantly upload her video to YouTube is called ShoZu. ShoZu has given various Warner Brothers artists ShoZu enabled cell phones that instantly upload pictures and video to a wide assortment of photo sharing and viral video sites.

No longer is there a time delay and need to upload content from a PC, with ShoZu it is done straight from the phone with the click of a single button. The technology also lets the user add comments, tags and will notify them once somebody posts comments on the website creating a totally interactive experience strait from the cell phone.

-- DISH Network subs will have on-demand access to Warner Bros. current and catalog titles on the satellite net's video on demand service and its pay-per-view services, including HD.

DISH Network's On Demand service gives customers the power to enjoy movies and other programs whenever they want and is currently available on the DISH Player-DVR 508, DISH Player-DVR 510, DISH Player-DVR 625 and ViP622 DVR receivers.

"Warner Bros. is a great addition to both DISH On Demand and Pay-Per-View," said Susan Arnold, vice president of Programming for EchoStar. "Hit movies such as "V for Vendetta" greatly enhance the variety of movie titles available to our customers."

-- In the Xbox Live marketplace this week, you can play a demo of the new Madden game. You play 1 minute quarters, Pittsburgh against Seattle.

-- Electronic Arts selected the Dallas Mavericks’ Dirk Nowitzki, Memphis Grizzlies’ Pau Gasol, San Antonio Spurs’ Tony Parker and Phoenix Suns’ Boris Diaw to join the Houston Rockets’ Tracy McGrady on the NBA LIVE 07 All-Star team as worldwide cover athletes and spokespersons.

Scheduled for release September 25, NBA LIVE 07 introduces a new, more intuitive AI system, advancements to fan-favorite features like All-Star Weekend and Dynasty Mode, and for the first time ESPN Motion and streaming ESPN radio podcasts.

Nintendo ready to tangle with Sony, Microsoft?

With all the attention being heaped on Sony's upcoming PS3 and Microsoft's excellent XBox 360, I still have a feeling that the biggest winner from the upcoming console wars could be Nintendo.

I don't think the Mario Company is going to topple the big two in sales, but I think it's going to create its strongest niche market yet, harkening back the days of its original console machines.

And in the hand-held market, Nintendo continues to thrive. Last week, the two millionth unique player logged onto the company's wireless gaming service. Nintendo issued a press release claiming that the population of its Wi-Fi Connection now surpasses the population of 15 U.S. states, including Montana, Nebraska and New Mexico.

In just nine months, more than 70 million game connections have een made.

REVIEWS
Star Fox Command: One of my favorite Nintendo console games ever looks great on the handheld DS, where you play again as Fox McCloud -- leader of an elite team of space pilots.

Star Fox is now Wi-Fi enabled, so you can play up to five players over local wireless connections or take on three players around the world via Nintendo's Wi-Fi service.

But it's also cool to play the computer, using the DS touch screen to drop bombs, steer your plane and even rubbing the screen to send your craft into a barrel roll. The creativity allowed by the screen, at least in the console and handheld world, is unparalleled.

Overall, the game's cool, too (Rating: 3.5/5)

NOTES
-- PNY Technologies has released three new Verto GeForce graphics cards, which are built to support the upcoming Microsoft Windows Vista. These cards will allow gamers to run the latest releases at the highest resolution settings on PCs.

"Video card buyers demand the highest quality graphics they can afford based on their PC's hardware requirements and primary applications," said Nicholas Mauro, senior marketing manager for PNY Technologies consumer graphics cards and memory. "For instance, all cards that feature Microsoft DirectX 9.0 will allow users to take their Vista operating experience to the next level. The recent additions to our Verto graphics card lineup support DirectX 9.0 and provide users with the flexibility to enjoy the latest HD gaming and video applications without sacrificing dollars for performance."

A little about each card:

• Verto GeForce 7600 GS AGP 8X – Features high-definition, home-theater quality video via an AGP platform. The card includes a 512MB frame buffer, 400 MHz core clock, 128-bit memory interface as well as a DVI-to-VGA adapter, S-Video Cable and HDTV Break-Out Pod. MSRP $199
• Verto GeForce 7600 GS PCIe – Equipped with 512MB of frame buffer memory and NVIDIA SLI ready, users will enjoy increased bandwidth and up to 2x the performance of a single GPU configuration. By allowing two graphics cards to run in parallel, SLI dramatically scales performance on today's hottest games. MSRP $199
• Verto GeForce 7300 GT PCIe – Users will enjoy home-theatre quality video with the 7300 GT's 256MB frame buffer, 350MHZ core clock, 128-bit memory interface as well as a DVI-to-VGA adapter, S-Video Cable and HDTV Break-Out Pod. MSRP $149

-- Want to take your Hi-Def movies with you? Toshiba’s new Qosmio G35-AV660 laptop can do that. It's got an Intel Core 2 Duo Processor, an enhanced version of its industry-leading digital entertainment notebook PC with HD DVD-ROM drive.

The increased processing power also enhances the standard capabilities of Toshiba’s Qosmio notebook line, such as viewing live TV from a cable or satellite feed with an integrated TV tuner, recording and pausing live TV or recording future programs through a digital video recorder (DVR), managing or playing video or audio files, or multi-tasking with other applications. In addition, the Qosmio G35-AV660 incorporates two 5400 RPM serial ATA 120GB hard drives for storage of TV programs, music and other files as well as 2048MB DDR2 memory.

Bottom line? It'll blow your desktop out of the water.

-- Time Warner Cable in Charlotte has debuted "Carolina On Demand," a new on-demand channel that produces its customers free, on-demand content from News 14 Carolina on Channel 814.

Nintendo selling eight games per minute?

The PSP is cool and all, but Nintendo's new DS Lite is the coolest hand held game you can buy right now.

On Sept. 13, Nintendo will add two new colors, Onyx and Coral Pink, to the roster, to go with the sweet Polar White, the one I am playing as am I writing this blog.

The smaller and lighter DS Lite fits into little hands perfectly (just ask my 6-year-old son who won't put it down) and it's helping Nintendo do some crazy sales figures. New Super Mario Bros has hit the 1 million sales mark in three months in the U.S. Nintendo claims that's eight games sold each minute since launch.

Overall, DS system and game sales are both up more than 300 percent in July alone.

"Not only are the DS Lite screen and battery life incredible," says George Harrison, Nintendo of America's senior vice president of marketing and corporate communications. "But the new colors just add another element of fun, allowing people to 'personalize' who they are by the color, or colors they pick."

Other hot DS games are Animal Crossing(R): Wild World (800,000--plus sold), Brain Age(TM): Train Your Brain in Minutes a Day (4 million units plus worldwide) and Big Brain Academy (nearly 2 million sold to date worldwide).

NOTES

-- 2K announced that Seth MacFarlane, creator and producer of the popular hit television series Family Guy, along with the rest of the cartoon's main cast, will voice characters in the first official Family Guy video game, which is scheduled to ship this fall.

-- By the time Microsoft Windows Vista operating system is launched in early 2007, an impressive lineup of titles will be available for gamers looking to get next-generation features, including quicker installations and increased platform stability. Vista will feature DirectX 10, which, combined with hardware provided by graphics processor creators, will result in the most graphically intense games experiences ever seen in a computer or video game.

LEGO Star Wars II: The Original Trilogy (LucasArts) is the sequel to the best-selling “LEGO Star Wars: The Video Game,” combining the fun and endless customization ability of the LEGO play pattern with the epic story, characters and action from the revolutionary “Star Wars.”

Zoo Tycoon 2: Marine Mania (Microsoft Game Studios), the latest expansion pack for the award-winning “Zoo Tycoon 2” franchise, allows gamers to turn their dream zoo into an aquatic extravaganza with 20 new marine animals and the ability to create extraordinary aquatic shows.

-- Xbox 360 will be the only place players can experience the next generation of soccer games this holiday. FIFA 07 from Electronic Arts will take you to the pitch with an all-new soccer engine and online technology allowing you to play with and follow your favorite teams from around the world. Also, Konami will bring Pro Evolution Soccer 6 to Xbox 360, which will have gamers controlling their favorite teams in matches spanning the globe.

-- Guild Wars Nightfall, the next game in the award-winning and critically-acclaimed Guild Wars franchise, will be available in stores worldwide October 27. In the new game, players must fight to hold back the night as a mad ruler attempts to free an outcast god and bring darkness to the continent of Elona. But players won't fight alone.

Guild Wars Nightfall introduces new customizable Heroes who level up, follow player instructions in combat, and use skills and equipment of the player's choosing.

A special Collector's Edition will include the Guild Wars Nightfall game as well as a Making of Guild Wars Nightfall behind-the-scenes DVD, a collector's art book, collectible skill pins, a character mini-standee, a poster-sized map of Elona, the Guild Wars Nightfall soundtrack CD, and more.

-- SEGA's Virtua Tennis 3 will allow you to challenge top women's players as well as men's. You can now choose to play best-of-5 set matches.

Virtua Tennis 3 will be available in spring 2007 on the Xbox 360, PS3 and PSP. Players on the game include 2006 Wimbledon Champion Amelie Mauresmo, Maria Sharapova, Venus Williams, and Martina Hingis. Nicole Vaidisova, Lindsay Davenport, and Daniela Hantuchova.

Male stars include four time Wimbledon Champion Roger Federer, as well as Rafael Nadal, James Blake, Andy Roddick, Tim Henman, Lleyton Hewitt, David Nalbandian, Sebastien Grosjean, Juan Carlos Ferrero, and Tommy Haas.

This time, Madden is worth the wait

Let's take care of this right off the bat. Madden '07, for the XBox 360 is the greatest video football game ever created. It's better than any previous Madden. It kills the first Xbox 360 version, released hurridly last season, and it stomps on NFL 2K5 and any other video football game you played.

It's does everything well. My only quip: No John Madden or Al Michaels in the game, again. This is probably due to the fact that Madden's partner wasn't named during much of the design of the game (remember, work begins on the new title pretty much as soon as the current one releases).

So next year, I'm expecting to see Michaels, Madden and the entire NBC feel integrated into the game -- plus the pre-, halftime and postgame shows featuring the new roster of NBC talent, or the kind of things that are present on a two-year-old game from 2K Sports, NFL 2K5 for PS2 and the original XBox.

That said, there are tons of new features on Madden 07, including the ability to control your lead blocker to open a hole for you. This is a complex operation that took awhile to master. But once you do, it opens up new doors.

In Franchise mode, you can scout college prospects and real plays from your favorite teams' defensive playbook are used.

The all-new highlight stick allows you to make moves that real players would make, that are specific to the type player you're controlling, i.e., a 300-pound defensive tackle is not going to dyke a 200-pound DB with a spin move.

On PS2, you can transfer an entire season in Franchise mode to your PSP system and take it with you.

You have the ability to create a player, take him through tryouts, hire an agent, do interviews and get drafted. Then you can control only that player during games. It's a neat feature to mess around with every once in awhile, but it didn't hook me.

What hooked me, on Xbox 360, was how beautiful everything was. This is one of the best looking videogames, of any genre, I've ever seen. You may remember how the first 360 Madden was rather cartoonish, as the new NCAA game can be at times.

This one looks so much better. It plays faster. Control is better. Animations are improved. I didn't see any players running through each other. I saw video Dan Morgan leaping over video Daunte Culpepper after video Julius Peppers had twirled Culpepper around in a realistic 360 degree tackle, slamming him hard to the ground.

Realism is way up and so is the fun factor. It's not hard to start playing this at 10 p.m. and forget what you're doing, and suddenly it's 3:30 a.m. on a worknight and you've got to get up in three hours.

Online play is fast and smooth with 360. I experienced zero lag times (though I did notice players fatigued very slowly online as compared to the real life type fatique in head-to-head or me vs. the computer).

There are a lot of people who complain about this game saying EA only updates the rosters each year. To an extent they are right. This is essentially the same game engine we've played on for years. But I think it's a smart move. People know how to play this immediately. They know what to expect.

And EA's plan seems to work. This game made $250 million last year and has earned about $1.5 billion since being introduced in 1989. Essentially, this is EA releasing a "Spider Man" or "Pirates" movie every summer.

There's been plenty enough tweaks to satisfy the hard-core gamer. Ultimately for me, I want the Madden experience to be as close to watching an NFL game as possible. The gameplay is about there right now. We need announcers and highlight shows to really take us to the next level, and I want the fans involved even more. Have them chant "DE-FENSE" at home when the home team needs a stop, boo poor play or get loud at the right times.

These new crowds are eons better than what we've seen in the past, but they mostly bounce up and down.

It's about the only thing I would change. But it'll have me waiting for next year. And right now, things are pretty sweet (grade: A).

Coaches Corner

Every year, West Charlotte High football coach Pete Gilchrist, the biggest Madden-head I know, offers his expert opinion of the new game. I gave him the Xbox version two weeks ago and let him have at it.

His thoughts:

"This game is made for all levels of Madden players. The "AI" is set up to take away the go-to plays -- used by those players who find one play and run it over and over -- and for the more experienced player the "A.I" defensive response is on the money with the defenses you call.

"The game checks are set up to help you change responsibiltys within a certain defense easier. The QB vision is still a part of this game (which I hate) but after a year of this unwanted feature it is not as distracting. The plays are more realistic: precision passing is a big, welcome return to the game. The juke moves were hard to work, mainly because I'm used to the PS2 controller.

"All in all, I would give this game a B+ , mainly because the QB Vision feature is a drawback. One suggestion? Allow the Vision to improve or falter as the season goes on depending how the season is going for that QB."

Madden Challenge Starts Sept. 1

Think you're a great Madden-ite? The 2006 Madden Challenge, the only official EA tournament, kicks off Sept. 1 to try to find the best Madden player going.

This year, the tournament expands from North America to Mexico, Canada, the United Kingdom, Germany and Hong Kong.

The winners from 26 US cities and five international tournaments move to the finals, held during the Pro Bowl week in Hawaii in February. The winner pockets a check for $100,000. The regional winners each pocket $1,000.

The challenge will be played on Xbox and Xbox 360. It hits Charlotte Oct. 28 at Concord Mills.

• The full Madden Challenge schedule

Madden about to get some competition?

It appears that the folks from 2KSports are planning to launch a new professional football game, based on a fictional league called the PFL.

As you recall EA Sports, owners of the Madden franchise, signed an exclusive rights agreement with the NFL so that it would be the only company licensed to use NFL players, logos and stadiums in its games.

It essentially wiped out the competition.

Now 2K, which was nipping at Madden's heels with its excellent 2K series of NFL titles, is apparently planning to get back into the game with teams like the Miami Hammerheads, Pittsburgh Iron Men and New Orleans Soul.

Now we know the folks at 2K make an excellent sports game. In many ways their NFL games, when fully licensed, were a more immersive experience than Madden titles, and 2K's NBA line is clearly better than what we've seen on NBA Live lately.

But will gamers play with fake teams in fake stadiums? We know they're willing, to a degree, to have fake names, as we've witnessed from college games. And true gamers know who No. 89 from the Panthers is or who No. 12 for New England is.

This might get interesting. All that said, I'm not allowed to release my official review of Madden '07 until Aug. 22, but after first blush, the game is the best Madden ever, so 2K7 or 2K8, which I'm hoping comes out, will have to be on point. I think competition makes everybody better.

REVIEWS
Sudoku Gridmaster: Dude, I love puzzle games, especially this mindless game which has you arrange numbers in order. It's like Seinfeld, a game about nothing. Like Seinfeld was (at least to some people; I never saw a single episode), it's terribly addicting.

Do a google search on Sudoku and you'll find hundreds of games to play on your PC. You can find them in papers and paperbacks to play on the road. Played on the Nintendo DS with this game, you don't need a pen and paper anymore and you don't need to sit at your computer table, either.

There's four difficulty settings and hints (really cheats) plus more than 400 Sudoku puzzles to keep you busy. I am enjoying this one. Mindlessly (Rating: 3.5/5)

Barnyard: This is based on an upcoming movie that I'd heard nothing about and it is really one of those life-based games where you just walk around and talk to people, or in this case animals. You solve a few puzzles and check out your 'hood, sometimes on a bike.

I wanted more action, and the worst news of all, my 6-year-old son, Trey, didn't go for it, either. His response after five minutes? "Dad, where Tiger Woods?" (Rating: 1.5/5)

Magnetica: Kind of like pinball for your Nintendo DS. You use the little stylus thingy on the DS to deal with this game, called Puzz Loop, in the arcade.

Your mission is to fire marbles at each other and make them blow up, while not letting the chain reach the end of the line.

This is one of those games I usually play while I'm waiting for my barber, Bernard Monroe, to call me to The Chair. I got so into this thing, beeping and buzzing and exploding, I almost lost my turn. It moves fast and sucks you in. It's one of those, "I can't believe I'm into this but I am" type of titles. Give it a shot (Rating: 3/5).

Dead Rising: Now, this is a great looking title on the X-360 system. You play as a freelance photographer chasing a big story. He lands in a sleepy town only to find out it's Zombie-ville. OK you've heard this before.

What's cool is you find safe haven in a shopping mall and have to try your hardest to keep the bad guys out of South Park and figure out how all of this started. The zombies are truly gruesome looking and just about anything you see in the game can be used as a weapon. We're talking lights, poles, books.

Time is key. Zombies are stronger -- and faster -- at night. Time moves on even if your character is at rest. Inside the mall, you'll find a variety of stores with a variety of weapons to help you stay alive. You'll also find some other survivors who may help you out.

The time tool used here is really cool. You have a set time to solve the mystery and if you're not careful you'll miss key plot developments. Oh, and you got to eat, too, to replinish your strength (rating: 4.0/5).

Working out at home or in the gym? What do you say?

This year, I made a resolution to try to get back in shape. I bought some size 38 pants in the fall, and I took a picture with wifey over Christmas and my face was, well, a bit more rounded than in some I remembered.

I have been a member of the YMCA since 1988 and used to play basketball in the Dowd location like a demon. I met a lot of lifelong friends there, but after breaking my wrist badly in '95 -- trying to dunk a rebound -- I gave up hoopin' and hoopin' pretty much was my only exercise.

So I slowly gained weight because I ate the same. Finally I decided to do something after seeing that picture over Christmas.

Getting to the YMCA was going to be hard because I have two kids and a full time job that has me running all times of the day and night. I went to the YMCA and met with a trainer and got a workout regimen even though I knew it would be hard to follow.

I figured I'd better try working out at home. We have had a treadmill here for a number of years (one of my previous failed experiments), so I dusted it off and began using it. I found, for me, it was much easier to hop on, turn on "Golf Central" and go, any time I felt. Didn't have to get dressed or drive to the gym.

As it turns out, the people from EFI Sports Medicine recently sent me a Total Gym to test. It's much better than the cheapy version you'd buy at Dick's and better than the one you see Chuck Norris advertise on television, too. She's not cheap, at about $2,400, but EFI offers several payment plan options that make it cheaper than buying a gym membership in some cases.

And let me tell you, Total Gym works. I get just as much "burn" as I do on the YMCA machines and I don't have to wait in line to use them, so I get a consistent cardio workout too.

I asked two friends -- one who works out regularly and one who has never worked out -- to come by and test out the Total Gym with me. I'll be reporting the results here over the next few weeks. And, if you have home exercise equipment or prefer working at the gym, I'd love to read your comments here.

NOTES

-- iH7 has a couple interesting back to school products. One is an iPod alarm clock with dual speakers. So instead of waking up to your favorite radio DJ or some music you hate, you can wake up to music you love (and your parents hate). Plus, with the great speaker array, it'll sound better than any clock radio you ever tried.

The other gadget is iH31 boom box. Yes, it's a boom box for your iPod. I remember my first cool boombox. Used eight C batteries, which would last for about two hours.

I took mine to West Charlotte High, pumping some sweet go-go ("Drop The Bomb") and had everyone rocking -- until I ran into the assistant principal. He confiscated my box on a day when we were having an outdoor festival and I was going to be sure to have all the cute girls around me, plus that upperclass junior cheerleader I liked so much.

New twist on NFL Fantasy Football & Proof Women Play Games, too

You like Fantasy Football leagues? Well, CBS Sportsline has a regular league but is adding a new one this season, "Head's Up Fantasy Football," that allows users to challenge players, whether they are fellow league members, other friends or even total strangers to a head-to-head game of Fantasy Football on a weekly basis throughout the regular season and all the way up to the Super Bowl.

In Heads Up, the pool of draftable players consists of NFL teams participating in either the early or late Sunday games. From these pools, participants in the Heads Up game will hold a draft along with their opponent where each selects a starting quarterback, two running backs, two wide receivers, a tight end, a kicker and a team defense along with three reserves.

Participants conduct add/drops as well as activate and reserve players while live games are played. Changes are reflected in the following quarter of action.

Heads Up Fantasy Football launches August 31st and is free of charge.

NOTES

-- Capcom's Street Fighter II Hyper Fighting, the company’s first title for Xbox Live Arcade is doing big business on Xbox Live. Since debuting Aug. 2, it's become the fastest selling Xbox Live Arcade title to date with hundreds of matches being played every hour.

-- In the tradition of myspace, There.com is a social networking site, a virtual community giving users an online getaway. You can interact with others through text, voice chat and compete in games like paintball, get in an online fashion show or card games. Basic membership is free!

-- Soccer fans rejoice. FIFA 07 is coming Oct. 3 to North America.

All the top leagues are including, including MLS and 26 other leagues from 20 other nations. This year, Electronic Arts has added Interactive Leagues, a new online mode that enables you to pit your club against supporters of your real-world opponents.

The online interactive leagues feature the F.A. Premier League, Bundesliga, French League and the Mexican 1st Division. This allows games to play according to the real-world schedule. When they play, you play.

-- From the "you never would guess" files:

Thirty-eight percent of all game players are women. Women over the age of 18 represent a significantly greater portion of the game-playing population (30%) than boys age 17 or younger (23%) according to the Entertainment and Software Association.

Thirty-five percent of American parents say they play computer and video games . Further, 80 percent of gamer parents say they play video games with their kids. Sixty-six percent feel that playing games has brought their families closer together.

On a similar note, women make up 59 percent of all consumers who play games on cell phones , according to Parks Associates, a research firm. And they drive more than 60 percent of the revenue in almost every genre of mobile games, according to research firm Telephia Inc. Women play cell phone games because they are easy to pick up and play and are not time intensive. That is exactly the types of games Nintendo is launching under their Touch Generations brand like Brain Age, Big Brain Academy and Nintendogs, a game where you raise and train these realistic and very visual puppies.

John Madden on his famous game

John Madden says his famous football videogame was never planned.

"I went from a player to a coach to a broadcaster and along the way the video game thing happened," he said. "We started the video game thing before they even had video games. It was going to be a computer game and more like a teaching tool but then all the hardware for video games broke out and we already had the software."

Madden says he always has to laugh at how he's recognized nowadays.

"The people that were around when I was coaching have known me as a coach," he said. "I'm known as a broadcaster from people who have been watching television, and I'm known as 'Madden' [to the gamers]. That's how I am always able to know the difference. Some call me 'coach,' and there is a group that says, 'Hey Madden.' When I get the 'Hey Madden,' it's the group that plays the video games."

NOTES
-- The World's First Internet age and ID verification system for kids is launching Wednesday, Aug. 2. The developers claim it will help prevent Internet "grooming" and make social networking and communication online safer.

A British company is developing the technology -- a virtual ID card that can be swapped online. More info as I get it.

-- SEGA announced Total War: Eras has shipped for the PC. Total War: Eras includes every currently available Total War title and also delivers limited edition content including "The Total War Story", a 40-minute documentary detailing the past, present, and future of the Total War series, exclusive preview material for the upcoming Medieval II: Total War, an art booklet detailing the creation and evolution of the Total War series, a collectable poster for Medieval II: Total War, and five art cards spanning the entire Total War franchise.

Rated "T" for Teen by the Entertainment Software Review Board, Medieval II: Total War for the PC is available at retailers nationwide for an MSRP of $59.95.

-- SEGA also released Super Monkey Ball Adventure for the PS2 and GameCube. Super Monkey Ball Adventure is an all-new platform-based journey through five amazing worlds filled with puzzles and quests.

Super Monkey Ball Adventure is the first platform adventure for AiAi and an all-new cast of monkey friends. The story begins when Prince Abe-abe and Princess DeeDee of opposing kingdoms fall in love but are forbidden from marrying. Rated "E" for Everyone by the Entertainment Software Review Board, Super Monkey Ball Adventure for the PlayStation 2 and GameCube is available at retailers nationwide for an MSRP of $39.95.

-- EA’s boutique studio in Montreal will be releasing a new third person shooter called Army Of Two for PS3 and Xbox 360 next year. Whether playing online or with the game's "parnter AI'' (artificial intelligence), the game focuses on two man play.

On or offline, players can seamlessly transition from AI to a live partner as they fight their way through war, turmoil and a conspiracy so vast it threatens the entire world. When one man is not enough, it’s going to take an army of two to save us.

NCAA '07 strong kickoff to hot video season

If you play PS2 or the old Xbox, you're going to love EA Sports' new NCAA '07 videogame. It will remind of you of last year's Madden '06, only better. Players are rendered better, game play is smoother, and every feature you can imagine is in the game.

But if you play the new more powerful Xbox 360 you may be disappointed.

You get eye-catching graphics, HDTV support and Dolby Digital sound but you're going to be missing some of the features that are included in PS2 and Xbox versions.

I can't figure that one.

There's no ESPN Magazine, no Race For The Heisman.

Shoot, there's not even a spring game, a cool new feature on Xbox 1 and PS2. There are more things missing, but you get the idea. How can your "franchise" product not have all the features. Let us hope that the new Madden is not so afflicted.

There is some good news for 360 people. The game plays better, as you might expect. There are new subtle animations that you really need the more powerful machine to appreciate. You can see arms churning and legs pumping in play. Tackling animation is much, much better.

This is the first year of the ESPN integration with EA games and you'll get dynasty results, conference updates and real-time sports scores and news updates with the ESPN ticker. It really looks like what you see during a real game.

There are a few new things I liked: you can save your highlights anytime to a NCAA photo album and share them online via Xbox Live, and there are new modes like defensive hot routes, smart routes and (thankfully) an improved kicking mode. Now you use the right analog stick to push up and down to create the action, like in Tiger Woods golf.

You can also switch to a computer controlled receiver to make a move on the ball on offense or defense without fear of ruining the play as in past years.

Best of all, you'll see fans come to life at the right times and do team specific chants. You won't believe how much reality this will add to your experience.

On all versions of the game, a momentum meter gives teams an advantage if they can string together big plays, defensive stops or even pull off trick plays. Another needed feature. And it's awful hard to bounce back when things are going against you.

And even with my quips with the 360 version, it's still the best. At the end of the day, when you play the game and see the stadiums come to life and see the graphics, you just get involved with the game itself. Most of the features missing are pre- and post-game.

With them, the 360 version may've been the best football game ever made. Withtout them, the 360 version still gets an A rating, as do the other versions. Let's just hope Madden on 360 is as complete as can be.

NFL Head Coach Whets Appetite For Some Football

If you tend to spend more time in the "general manager" mode of sports games -- trading players, making coaching moves, adjusting the price of hot dogs -- you're going to like EA Sports' new "NFL Head Coach" videogame.

If you're into running plays and banging on your remote control, you'd better wait for Madden or some of the college football games.

This one is short on action and quite long on strategy and your moves have a real impact on your team. You create game-day strategies and how you deal with players in practice will affect their moods and performance.

Honestly, this could be a really cool addition to the upcoming Madden game, which would give it more depth, but as a stand alone game, Head Coach will probably have a limited audience (Rating: 2.5/5).

QUICK REVIEWS:

The Da Vinci Code: Based on the controversial Columbia pictures film, gamers will try to unlock the code on a 2,000-year-old mystery. I haven't seen the movie but this game is said to have levels that are not in the movie, expanding its storyline. At its heart, this is an adventure game and a puzzle game where you must beat a convert society which seeks to keep an ancient secret. Rated T for teen (Rating: 3.0/5).

Field Commander: If you like war games, you're going to love this. The old PS2 can still kick out some pretty stunning visuals and it's nice to see that in a game that also includes some good strategy.

You must use your mind as much as your hand-eye coordination to guide your division to victory over a terrorist organization, and the game is really all about strategy. The enemy AI (artificial intelligence) is high, so you'd better master all 15 army divisions at your disposal (Rating: 3.5/5).

Monster Hunter Freedom: You are a hunter battling some big ugly beasts, something like the old movie, "Van Helsing." The creatures on this PSP effort from Capcom are rendered pretty well, though they won't really scare you. You can play alone or with up to four friends (a feature I discovered while waiting for a haircut and a teenager sidled up to me with the same game). (Rating: 3.0/5).

New Super Mario Bros: You know the deal here. It's Mario for the Nintendo DS system. Nowadays, though, mushrooms make Mario really small or really big depending on which one you pounce on. Touch a blue shell and Mario will turn into a whirlwind shell that wipes out your opponents.

All your favorite bad guys are here, along with a few new baddies for Mario and Luigi to take out en route to saving Princess Peach who has (again) been kidnapped by Bowser and Bowser Jr. All day fun (Rating: 4.5/5).

DirecTV offering Hi-Def locals in Charlotte

Attention DirecTV Hi-Def customers, you can now get your local networks in high-definition.

DirecTV fired up HD locals in nine new markets, including Charlotte, today. Raleigh also came online today. Hoping to shrink the HD advantage that many cable networks have, DirecTV now offers local HD channels in 36 cities, with plans for 13 more before year's end.

Customers who subscribe to a programming package that includes local channels receive both the standard and HD signals at no extra monthly charge.

To get the new programming, DirecTV customers will need to upgrade their satellite dish and receiver. But I'd wait a bit to make the switch. In most areas of Charlotte, you can receive local channels with an attenna connected to your current HD receiver. DirecTV will introduce an HD-DVR that will receive the local channels and other new programming, such as video-on-demand, later this summer.

But if any of you spring for the new programming, drop me a line and let me know how it all turned out.

Adam Morrison unplugged & in a Bobcat jersey

Adam Morrison turns 19 on July 22 and if he's chosen by Charlotte in tonight's NBA draft, he doesn't expect a big adjustment moving down south from out west.

"I think Charlotte's a nice city," Morrison told me recently during an interview to promote the upcoming NBA Live videogame. "It's laid back, with a little west coast style, so I'll be alright."

You've probably heard all about Morrison's diabetes by now (he's tired of talking about it) and about his apparent lack of athleticism or defensive ability (he says he'll prove people wrong next winter). I was curious what does a national college player of the year and new millioniare do with his first big check.

Morrison bought a black Range Rover with black leather interior and upgraded it with black 22-inch rims. When he puts in his iPod in the truck, you'll find a range of music there, a mix of rap and classic rock.

I asked Adam a few questions during our chat. Here's some samples of his answers:

Q. You're a big Larry Bird fan. You were born in '84 during his heyday. How did you get into No. 33?

"In high school, I started watching NBA TV which has classic games on and I studied his game and I started to try to pattern myself after him and I realized how good he was. I met him once at the Final Four, at a brief awards ceremony. It was pretty neat. But I was tongue-tied. I didn't know what to say to him."

Q. Billy Packer or Dick Vitale?

"Ah, man, that's tough. I'd have to go with Packer just for how he's so blunt and talks to you man-to-man on TV, but both are very good. It's almost a toss-up."

Q. What celebrity have you met that made your knees buckle?

"Other than Bird? None really. I'm not real big on that whole deal anyway. People are people."

Q. I figure since you're involved with Electronic Arts now you must be a big videogame nut, huh?

"Yeah, very much. It’s probably the second best thing I’m good at. I play a lot of Madden and all the sports games, like Fight Night. I throw Halo in there once in awhile. I play online a lot."

Q. Cool, what's your gamer tag so we can find you online and go head up?

"Can't do that, man. I've had problems with giving my username out. Once, my tag got out and I couldn't get people to leave me alone online. Most of it is people giving you crap."

Q. You went through the digial process to have your image put into the game. So how does the digital you compare to the real thing?

"They made a mock player when I did a deal for them. It’s funny how they had me looking on it. Almost like a (guy with a) mullet in short-shorts, but it fits my style I guess. I guess I'm a throwback player. A lot of people say that, but I don't imagine myself as that, but maybe so."

Q. First autograph you ever got and the last one you got?

"First one I got was (former Seattle SuperSonics center) Jack Sikma when i was little at basketball camp and that was probably the last one. I'm not big on autographs. I like to shake a person's hand and just say I met them."

Q. What's your take on sports talk radio?

"I listen sometimes. I think some guys have some good points and some are on there to bring other people down. It’s a little different hearing peopel have their opinion on you. Eveybody’s entitled to their own opinion and not everybody's going to like you. That’s why I don’t read internet sites and message boards. You get cuaght up in that and you’re not worried about most important thing -- playing well."

Q. Gotta bring up the diabetes thing.

"Yeah, I know, but I think I've shown people I can play at the next level. I played 38 minutes per game last year and led the nation in scoring. I've proven I can compete at a high level. I understand why people have all the questions and the best thing I can do is prove it to them, that I can play with this. I can keep saying it all I want."

Q. If you come here, what will you bring to the Bobcats?

"A positive attitude. I want to continue the building process of an organization on the rise. I think I'll be a good fit and I like the core group of guys. I could do well there."

"Ultimate" choice in TV plus a free DVR

On June 28, DirecTV will introduce the most expensive television package in history.

DirecTV Titanium unlocks every channel the sat service has -- for an annual $7,500 fee.

Now that's some serious choke, of course, but you get every channel on DirecTV: every pay-per-view (even boxing and wrestling), every movie channel, all the Spanish stations. You get 24-hour concierge customer service (no more waiting) and up to 10 standard or high definition DVRs.

I think DTV could sell a lot more of these packages if there were reduced options, say, Titanium Light that included everything except pay per views, for example, and had a more reasonable monthly price.

But if you have the cash and like to watch TV, it's pretty cool. You'd never visit Blockbuster again and you'd be a fan fave in your neighborhood whenever there was a big PPV event.

"DirecTV Titanium is the ultimate entertainment experience; there is simply nothing like it in the market today," said David Hill, president, DirecTV Entertainment. "The select few who get access to TITANIUM will experience an unlimited world of entertainment possibilities."

FREE HD DVR?

Ok, I've told you about something that is way too expensive with DirecTV, so here's something that's free. Customers across the nation are getting free HD-Tivo units by subscribing to DirecTV's "NFL Sunday Ticket" package or calling customer retention and threatening to leave the service unless they get the unit.

The HD-Tivo allows you to record Hi-Def programming and receives local Hi-Def channels via an antenna. DirecTV plans to introduce its own HD DVR without Tivo this summer. The new model will receive the HD local channels DirecTV has started beaming in select markets (Charlotte HD locals should launch later this month, a company rep tells me).

DirecTV, sources say, will swap out the old HD-Tivo unit for the new unit either free or for a $19.99 shipping and handling fee, which is better than shelling out whatever price the new receiver will cost.

Nintendo's fun game trains your brain

Here's a neat twist on the normal bang-and-shoot videogame world.

Nintendo's new Big Brain Academy challenges players with a series of wacky mental tests in areas such as thinking, memorization, computation, analysis and identification.

The questions come fast and furious, giving you 60 seconds to answer and the questions rapidly get harder in 15 different tests that you use the touch screen pad of your DS or DS Lite to answer.

You start out by doing things like counting the numbers in a stack, matching colors and figuring out what object weighs the most. You get letter grades on performance and if you have an ounce of competitiveness in you, you won't put this down.

News N Notes

-- Activision has kicked off a Call Of Duty 2 XBox 360 tournament. Click here to register and compete against others for a chance to win a 2006 Jeep Wranger, Best Buy gift cards and other prizes.

Call Of Duty 2 is the most popular XBox live multiplayer game and more than 500 four-person teams are expected to battle in single-elimination, bracket-style competitions.

-- SyNET Entertainment will release what it says is the world's first full 3D online multiplayer golf game, Shot-Online, in August.

The $29.99 game will combine true golf simulation with role playing, forcing players to deal with emotions, weather and geography as well as developing their player's personality.

-- AIT Solutions has launched a new website to help users protect their laptops from theft.

It provides tools including a "Police Trackable GPS" metal tag bonded to the laptop to deter theft; proprietary GPS software that locates a stolen laptop; and covert removal of important files at the direction of the rightful owner. Files can be silently removed without knowledge of the thief, and returned securely to the rightful owner.

-- PlayStation2 is outselling the new Xbox 360 in six of the seven months since the new Microsoft machine release.

Since the release of the Xbox 360, Microsoft has averaged 246,000 U.S. console sales monthly versus 473,000 monthly units for PS2. Looks like the videogame world is still awaiting PS3 for its next-gen fix.

Dish Network expands HD and deliver high speed internet

And the HD winner, for now, is DISH network.

The sat net announced four new HD channels today -- HGTV HD, NFL Network HD, National Geographic Channel HD and Starz HD. With the additions, DISH now has 29 HD channels, more than any pay-TV provider in the United States.

DISH also announced a price reduction on the MPEG-4 receivers needed to receive the new programming, dropping $100 to $199.

Getting the NFL Network in HD is a huge coup, because live games will be shown on the network next year and some HD fans might switch to DISH instead of waiting for cable or DirecTV to also add NFL HD. That's unless the competition doesn't add it sooner.

DirecTV, for one, says it will be the HD leader in 2007 once newly launched satellites begin to beam down new programming and customers are converted to MPEG-4 receivers from the MPEG-2 models they have now.

With those M-4 receivers, DirecTV will offer local HD channels. Charlotte is slated to get HD locals this summer.

In addition, DISH customers are getting access to a new form of high speed Internet service. Dish's parent company, EchoStar, signed a five-year distribution agreement with WildBlue Communications, a satellite-delivered broadband Internet service.

"DISH High-Speed Internet, powered by WildBlue," will be targeted toward DISH customers located in rural markets starting this fall. As part of the agreement, WildBlue is the only satellite-based Internet solution that EchoStar will offer to its customers for the next five years.

With DISH High-Speed Internet, customers will be able to have access speeds up to 30 times faster than dial-up. The two-way satellite service provides an always on, high-speed data connection. DISH Network customers will need to purchase a separate WildBlue satellite dish to receive the broadband service; however, they do not need an additional phone or cable line. Pricing will be announced later this year.

News n Notes
-- Here's a pretty interesting and original promotional push: Ubisoft, one of the world’s largest videogame publishers, is putting out an ongoing series of videos showcasing useful scientific facts about crazed, out-of-control Bunnies in its upcoming "Rayman Raving Rabbids." Of course, the information provided will be useful in beating the game, out for the holiday season. Click here to get the audio download.

Run To New X-Men Film, Run Away From New X-Men Game

The headline about says it all. The new X-Men film, by director Brett Ratner, is pulse-pounding, intense and despite the claims about a "Last Stand," it sets the stage for Sentinels and more Magneto in a future X-Men IV. Be sure to stick around after the credits for a pretty cool, if predictable surprise after the current film that sets it up.

As for "X-Men, The Official Game," well, it doesn't come close to the film. You can control three characters. Two of them, Wolverine and the Ice Man, have about three moves. It gets repetitive quickly, though, sliding around on an ice slide being created as you -- Silver Surfer style -- is kind of neat.

NightCrawler has better moves. He can teleport across rooms and through some objects. His plotline is better, too, but even his storyline grows stale too quickly, mainly because the game is too easy and the bad guys too dumb.

There are 28 missions for the heroes to complete against villians like Hydra and Magneto's Brotherhood. The final battles against the big villians, the bosses in videogame speak, are quite good, but there's just not enough fun getting there.

Activision could've had a superb game but took a misstep of sorts. It's a renter, but not a keeper (Rating: 2.5/5).

More golf in HD....wonderful

As more and more professional and college sporting events are being telecast in high definition, golf continues to lag behind the field.

CBS a few years back showed the majority of its events in glorious high-def, a format that requires a specialty TV and a specialty receiver but one that delivers unparalleled picture clarity and sound. But CBS has backed off of their HD promise, showing only the Masters "toon-a-mint" in the format.

Now, NBC has announced that it will broadcast six hours of live coverage from the Senior PGA Championship from Oak Tree Golf Club in Edmond, OK, this weekend. It's the beginning of the network's commitment to HD coverage. Expect to see the majority of its PGA coverage, including the US Open and Ryder Cup, in HD.

This is a very, very good thing. Golf telecasts can look washed out sometimes and they look entirely different in HD. You almost feel there. With the flowers and grass and water, it provides spectacular HD theater. I can only hope CBS will follow (and maybe a Golf Channel HD channel?).

USA Network will provide early round coverage of the Senior PGA today (Thursday) and tomorrow, 2-4 p.m. , simulcast in high definition on UniversalHD.

"It's going to take a lot of makeup to make these guys look good, myself included," said NBC analsyt Roger Maltbie.

I'm just glad NBC is making the effort.

I'm admitting it, I like IE 7

Yes, Microsoft has been bashed many a time over its Internet Explorer web browser. Yes, Firefox is better than the current Microsoft offering (until you encounter sites that are "optimized" for IE and don't load properly in the little orange browser).

But if you have visited Bill Gates' homepage lately, you'll notice a free download for a beta version of the next IE, version 7, that promises more security, faster downloads and generally just a better browsing experience.

After two days with IE7, I think Gates' folks have mostly succeeded. The new browser loads pages faster, allows for much faster switching between pages and generally just looks better.

Now instead of clicking the minimize button, or more, to change between websites, you can "tab" to a new site instantly. As you visit a site, you can click a small button near the top of the page to load a new browser window. Once you do that, you'll see your old page next to it with a small title of what the page is. This allows for much easier switching between pages.

This isn't a new thing, but it's new to IE and it works well.

Other features I liked were being able to resize pages before printing. With a touch of a button, you can shrink pages, by percentage, to fit on, say, one printer page, within the margins and you can see a print preview.

You can touch a button to subscribe to pages that have RSS feeds, like this one, to deliver the latest blogs and news updates to you when they are ready. The good ol' pop up blocker, which is handy, is back and Microsoft has added a new Phishing filter to let you check to make sure any website you visit is the real thing.

So when you get an email to reset the password for your PayPal and click the link in the email (and remember, we NEVER do that), you can get the page, which looks like PayPal, run the Phishing tool and find out if it's the real McCoy before you go typing in your mother's maiden name.

Searching is also easier. There's a search box in the upper right hand corner (no more tying in Google). You can pick from several search engines by pulling down an arrow key next to the box. Very easy. It's cake, really. And the new IE is, too.

But what do you think?

Microsoft's world domination strategy revealed -- and it's good

We know that Nintendo's new Wii unit and Sony's $499 to $549 PS3 are coming to market this year. But by the time they do, Microsoft boss Bill Gates said his Xbox 360 system will have a 10 million unit head start.

At the annual Electronic Entertainment Expo in Los Angeles, Gates also announced plans this week to connect millions of Xbox 360 gamers with hundreds of millions of Windows-based PC and mobile gamers from around the world through the Xbox Live online entertainment network.

Dubbed “Live Anywhere,” the initiative puts gamers at the center of a always-on world where their digital identities, games, friends and digital entertainment are always accessible through the familiar Xbox Live interface, regardless of location or device. The plan also clears the way for groundbreaking cross-platform gameplay scenarios, with participants using Windows-based PCs, mobile phones and Xbox 360 consoles to play together simultaneously.

“By opening the Xbox Live entertainment network to the entire universe of Windows and mobile gamers, we’re creating unparalleled gameplay opportunities that will drive incredible growth of the online community,” said Gates. “Our vision is to deliver consistent, compelling experiences that make it easy for consumers to jump in and play, from any device at any time. It’s a vision that only Microsoft can deliver.”

If Microsoft is able to pull this off well, it would have a huge advantage on the competition. Essentially your PC could become an extension of your 360.

By this time next year, Microsoft expects more than 6 million gamers to be connected to Xbox Live. Currently, there are mor than 25 million casual gamers playing on MSN Messenger and MSN Games.

Gates plans to allow all of them to access Xbox Live this winter via Microsoft's new Vista operating system. Now, you know you had to get new software for this, right?

NOTES

• Microsoft plans to have 160 Xbox 360 titles available by years end. Gates dazzled the crowd with an initial look at “Halo 3,” the sequel to the Halo 2, which did more than $125 million in sales.
  
  In this third chapter of the “Halo” trilogy, Master Chief returns to finish the fight, bringing the epic conflict between the Covenant, the Flood and the entire human race to a dramatic, pulse-pounding climax.
• Microsoft’s mobile offering will enable a true mobile gaming ecosystem, providing consumers with the opportunity to try games before they buy, store catalogs of the hottest bite-sized games locally on their phones, post game achievements and scores for others to see and most importantly, provide mobile gamers access to cross-platform gaming communities at any time, from any location.
  
  
• The first Hip-Hop Gaming League championships will be held Saturday at Club Element in Hollywood. Rapper Snoop Dogg will host the event, which will feature two league semifinal matches, a championship and a VIP exhibition tournament.

All matches will be played on specially modded Xbox 360s.

If you're in Hollywood, look for red carpet arrivals to begin at 3 p.m. with folks like Snoop, FHM model Vida Guerra and Kansas City Chiefs tight end Tony Gonzalez. If you're not out west, MTV2 is scheduled to carry the proceedings at a later date to be announced.

EA Sports creating exclusive Madden version for Wii

Nintendo's new Wii game machine got a big shot in the arm Tuesday when Electronic Arts announced that it was creating a customized version of its Madden NFL 07 especially for the machine.

EA says this game is "conceived as an entirely original football experience."

EA hopes to utilize Wii's groundbreaking console controller to give gamers more control over passing, kicking, snapping, throwing and running as never before.

“Nintendo is breaking new ground with Wii. The brilliance of their innovation is inspiring and we have dedicated ourselves to developing outstanding new play experiences for the platform,” said John Schappert, EA's Senior Vice President and Group Studio General Manager. “Deploying resources against a single platform in this manner is a new approach for us – but it is the right approach.”

Schappert added, “Madden NFL 07 is a Wii original. You may have played a football game in the past, but you’ve never played a game like this before.”

"EA is renowned for their superior games," noted Reggie Fils-Aime, Executive Vice President, Sales and Marketing, Nintendo of America Inc. ”With their in-house development talent and the huge innovative leap the Wii controller and the system offer, we can't wait to experience the games."

Finally, some official PS3 News

This is one of the biggest weeks for videogame nuts, the annual Electronics Entertainment Expo in L.A. And Sony used the opening day to drop some big news about its new PlayStation 3 unit, due Nov. 17 in the U.S.

The unit will come with either a 60-gig hard drive ($549) or a 20-gig drive ($499) and Sony expects to ship two million PS3s in the first month of launch and four million by the end of the year.

Microsoft's Xbox 360 is available now with a 20-gig drive for $399.

Electronic Arts CEO was at Sony's presser Monday and demonstrated the power of the new system. He showed a PS3 player model and a Ps2 model using the EA Sports "NBA Live" franchise.

On PS3, the NBA player actually had to pick up his feet to move. On Ps2, as gamers know, players just kind of slide around.

NOTES

• Toshiba’s has introduced the Qosmio G35-AV650, the first notebook PC shipping in the U.S. to incorporate an HD DVD-ROM drive. The system is backwards-compatible with current DVD formts and includes a bright screen display, HDMI support and Dolby Digital sound.
• Super Computer International creating a customized gaming client that incorporates AOL's popular AIM service to optimize the instant messaging (IM) experience for online gamers. Called PlayLinc, it'll give online gamers server browsing, friend tracking, player invitations, collaborative game launching across a variety of gaming platforms, team management, VoIP, on-game controls and information.
• Sales of digital televisions grew more than 100 percent during the first quarter of 2006, according to the Consumer Electronics Association. According to the CEA, the industry sold 3.4 million DTV units during the first quarter of 2006, equaling a 101 percent increase in unit sales over the same time last year, and $3.6 billion in dollar sales. Unit sales of flat panel displays 201 percent.
• NewSoft has released key technology features in version 1.06 of the Presto! Digital Converter. It's an all-inclusive solution for direct to DVD conversion of analog video and audio to digital. The new version adds MPEG-2 support and the MPEG-4 format support for the Apple iPod and Sony PSP.
• Sega will release a new Sonic title for Nintendos' Wii console early in 2007. Sonic's new adventure unfolds from a storybook of the classic tale, Arabian Nights, the last several pages from the book have gone missing, and it's up to Sonic to re-create the story.

Xbox 360s (hopefully) now hitting store shelves

After a serious product shortage hurt early sales of the excellent Xbox 360 system, Microsoft says it is now shipping two to three times the number of consoles that had previously been shipped to retailers each week.

The company said that would keep it on track to meet forecast of 4.5 to 5.5 million units worldwide by the end of June 2006.

Microsoft needs to up the hardware push. For the month of March, the videogame tracking NPD Group reported that nearly 277,000 new PS2 units were sold in North America compared to nearly 192,000 Xbox 360s.

NOTES

PSP SALES UP: PlayStation Portable outsold Nintendo’s GameCube 192,000 to 63,000. In a year, more than 4.5 million PSP units have sold in North America. NPD data also showed that PlayStation 2 software outsold Xbox 360: (2.2 million to 1.6 million units.)

360 TITLES HOT: Xbox 360 games are doing well, however.

Both “Ghost Recon: Advanced Warfighter” (Ubisoft) and “Elder Scrolls IV: blivion” (Bethesda) are leaving store shelves fast.

Bethesda announced “Oblivion” shipped more than 1.7 million copies on the Xbox 360 and Windows platforms between its launch on March 20 and April 7, making it one of the fastest-selling RPGs ever.

In Europe, “Ghost Recon Advanced Warfighter” topped the all-formats sales charts the week it released – replaced only by “Oblivion” two weeks later.

XBOX LIVE POPULAR: More than 10 million pieces of content have been downloaded from the Xbox 360 Live Marketplace since launch.

In addition to high-definition movie trailers, games and demos, more than three million of the downloads were Xbox Live Arcade game titles. The ability to “try Arcade titles before you buy” is a big hit, with an average 20 percent trial-to-purchase conversion rate (39 percent for the most popular Arcade game, “Geometry Wars.”)

Coming up, gamers will be able to download three new content packs for “Kameo: Elements of Power” plus users will submit their own creative skin designs, with the winner’s skin available to the community after the contest concludes.

In “Perfect Dark Zero,” fans will enjoy new maps and new gameplay functions. The downloadable “Project Gotham Racing 3” Speed Pack gives racers access to new gameplay upgrades including new cars.

“Project Gotham Racing 3” also kicked off its first major tournament on April 17. When users register for the event, their game becomes tournament-enabled with the most recent update, and then they compete with other speed demons from around the world in a variety of events. Qualifiers and single-elimination tournaments culminate in a race for the gold at the Lamborghini Factory in Italy in June.

EXCLUSIVE X CONTENT: Lastly, Xbox Live users can now download exclusive content from Epic records, Each month, Epic features songs in 5.1 digital and high-definition videos from a new artist, starting with British singer-songwriter Natasha Bedingfield whose video “Unwritten” was available in April. Artists of the Month will also participate in the “Game with Fame” program on Xbox Live Arcade, giving fans a chance to test their mettle against their favorite musicians.

Nintendo hopes Wii is ready for new console

Nintendo's next generation video game console has an official name: Wii.

Formerly known as code-name "Revolution," the company dubbed its new game Wii (pronounced "we") because it plans to "break down the walls" that separate hard core gamers from everyone else.

Nintendo wants to create a system that everyone can use. It also wants a system where you don't need a nickname. PlayStation is PS2 or PS1, XBox is X or the box.

Wii, Nintendo hopes, will be just Wii. And they probably hope "we" buy a lot of them.

-- I know you gamers have been waiting on this, so.... A company called Exent Technologies has launched a suite of in-game advertising solutions, so if the middle of your Doom quest online, you could be feted with ad to buy Diapers.

The solution allows for the enablement of in-game ads without the need to access the video game's source code. Until now, implementation was limited to new releases which would have had such progamming designed into it.

Now, the company claims publishers can "easily flip the switch on in-game advertising campaigns for games that were never originally designed to support it."

-- Casual game provider Game Trust released updated software which includes universal chat, free instant messenger, buddy lists, and social networking links for 65 integrated games distributed across prominent online brands, including MiniClip.com and Shockwave.com. The new enhancements, as part of the Game Frame Version 4.8 release, create a Community Gaming experience for players worldwide.

Every player can extend their Game Frame profile with a link to their personal site, allowing players to learn more about members of the community.

-- Former Southern Cal QB and Heisman award winner Matt Leinart is writing a blog for EA Sports detailing the days leading up to the NFL draft this weekend. Is he going to talk about the wild photos of him partying that are all over the net?

Sony opens up PSP to more uses

Sony is making viewing multimedia content, including podcasts, easier to look at on its PSP system.

A new 2.7 firmware upgrade, now available for download, delivers support for the Macromedia Flash Player, which allows users to experience videos and other multimedia content right from their PSP system.

Also, audio content from RSS channels can now be saved directly to the Memory Stick Duo, enabling users to listen to their favorite podcasts at their convenience.

Click here to get the download, which can also be taken down wirelessly to a PSP system with a Wi-Fi connection.

--- DISH Network customers are getting their OLN channel back beginning today. DISH and OLN have reached a multi-year agreement after the channel went dark on the mini-dish provider.

"It was important that we negotiated a fair contract, enabling DISH Network to remain a tremendous value for our customers," said Eric Sahl, senior vice president of Programming at DISH. "We understand that this has been a difficult period for our customers, and we thank them for all their patience. We look forward to a long relationship with OLN in which we can provide the network to our customers."

OLN returns to channel 151 in America's Top 180, DishHD Gold or any higher programming package. National Hockey League fans can now catch exciting playoff action including tonight's double-header involving the New York Rangers at New Jersey Devils at 7 p.m. (EDT), and the Colorado Avalanche at Dallas Stars at 9:30 p.m. (EDT). Visit www.OLNTV.com for a complete NHL playoff schedule.

-- There's NetFlix and Blockbuster and now MovieBeam, an over-the-air downloadable movie service that is coming to Charlotte soon. You buy the MovieBeam player for $199 and it comes with 100 movies installed. Each week, up to 10 movies are automatically downloaded via a small antenna to the box. You don't need cable or satellite.

Rental fees are $1.99 to $4.99 and browsing the website
shows that the service has the type of new releases you'd expect to find at the other services of this type.

-- A new iPod docking station is a must-have for users of the fantastic storage device. It comes with an RF remote and a USB charger and lets you easily connect your iPod to a computer, stereo or television set.

-- VSO Software's Image Resizer seems like a good creation. It allows users to resize pictures or change their format (from gif to jpeg for example). This tool can help improve pictures management and saves storage space. Image files which are smaller in size are more easily sent by email, something difficult to do with the original file size.

The resizer (available as freeware) handles images in all popular formats: bmp, jpeg, gif, png and can converts them at the preferred resolution (from 320x200 to 1600x1200, including even Ipod photo and video, Sony PSPS, HDTV and DVD). The images will adjust automatically to the size of the desktop or to the source used to display them.

Nintendo wants better games for better systems

Nintendo president Satoru Iwata has challenged game developers to think out of the box when creating video games. I applaud him. As good as the technology is getting with delivering graphics, the actual game play hasn’t changed much since the days of Pong.

Iwata promises to give developers all the tools they need to create new and better games, including the controller for Nintendo's next home console (code-named Revolution), which lets users control the action on their television screens through the motion of the controller itself.

The controller, Iwata hopes, will enable developers to create new kinds of gaming experiences, ones that enhance the experience for hard-core gamers while making video games more accessible and less intimidating to novices.

"This new approach is like stepping onto an unexplored continent for the first time, with all the potential for discovery that suggests," Iwata said. "No one else can match the environment we're creating for expanding the game experience to everyone. Our path is not linear, but dynamic."

• Iwata also announced partnerships with Sega and Hudson to offer downloadable access to their classic games via Revolution's Virtual Console.

Revolution owners will be able to relive their past gaming glories from the Sega Genesis console by playing a "best of" selection from more than 1,000 Genesis titles, as well as games sold for the TurboGrafx console (a system jointly developed by NEC and Hudson). These games join Revolution's access to 20 years of fan-favorite Nintendo games from the NES, Super NES and
Nintendo 64 eras.

• Iwata said a new game, The Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass, would be released for Nintendo DS later this year.

Madden Bowl Championship Tonight on ESPN

Here's the beauty of blogging: I get a press release -- kind of late -- about an event happening tonight (Thursday April 20th) and I can still let you know about it.

In the old days, this would've been something I couldn't have told you about in Friday's newspaper. And it's a good one, at least for you sports video game heads:

Tonight (Thursday April 20) at 9:30 p.m., ESPN will air a special presentation of the 2006 EA Sports Madden Bowl, filmed on location at the Colony Club in Detroit during the week of this year's Super Bowl. It pits the top eight Madden gamers in the NFL against each other in a sudden death tournament to determine the best in the league.

The finale of this two-part special airs Thursday, April 27^th at 9:30pm.

Competing are: Willis McGahee (Buffalo); Marcus Trufant (Seattle); Edgerrin James (Arizona); Chad Johnson (Cincinnati); Alex Smith (Tampa Bay); Antonio Gates (San Diego); Mark Clayton (Baltimore); Santana Moss (Washington)

2K Sports scores with College Hoops 2K6

I am still without an Xbox 360 and I'm sad about it. Really. The only way I can enjoy fabulous 360 games like 2K Sports' "College Hoops 2K6" is to tote my games over to a friend's house.

But it's probably just as well. If I had a 360 in my house right now, I'd be playing this game all day long. Graphically, college basketball has never looked better. Even though the players' names cannot be displayed on their jersies, per NCAA rules, you can recognize many of your favorite players and coaches.

The players sweat and their faces have appropriate expressions and the entire experience is just so, well, pure. You get real fight songs that sound like real bands playing them. There's authentic crowd noise, that comes and goes at the right time. You can see the student sections bouncing up and down.

A new right analog stick-based shooting system will remind you a bit of EA Sports' controls, but works well to enhance shooting, and every feature you could want is in the game. If your team isn't playing in this weekend's Final Four, you can put it there with this game and it won't look much different than the broadcast CBS is putting on (CBS by the way is using this game to diagram plays during its pregame shows for the Elite 8 and Final Four). Get this one. Or at least click here and view the trailer.

Microsoft's new Ipod killer?

There have been rumors floating around for months that Microsoft was developing what some have dubbed an "iPod killer," a device that would download music and also be used to play video and videogames.

This week, San Jose Mercury News writer Dean Takahashi put out some more credible information. Takahashi has just finished a book, "The Xbox 360 Uncloaked: The Real Story Behind Microsoft's Next-Generation Video Game Console."

While reporting for it, he got serious wind of Microsoft's new project and just who the company has coordinating the effort: the director is Greg Gibson, system designer on Xbox 360, and Xbox finance chief Bryan Lee is handling the money side of the project.

Takahashi thinks the Microsoft handheld device would resemble the PlayStation Portable unit, would probably debut in 2007 and could probably run many of the original Xbox games at launch. The code name for the Microsoft's "iTunes"-like music service? "Alexandria."

So you want an HDTV for March Mania, but which one?

If you're buying a TV these days, it makes quite a bit of sense to go ahead and buy an HDTV, which deliver much sharper pictures than traditional sets. HDTVs also offer Dolby Digital sound via a stereo hookup, so your system will look and sound like a movie theater.

All that's cool, but which kind should you buy: LCD, plasma, DLP?

Panasonic vice president of technology, Jeff Cove, says it depends.

"Each of these technologies all look beautiful," Cove said. "You have to focus on what's the most important thing for (your) living room."

For example, if you want to put a digital set in a kitchen or a room with a lot of light, you probably want to try an LCD.

"It's the best performer in really bright viewing conditions," Cove said. "Plasma wouldn't be as good."

LCD sets go up to about 40 to 45 inches in most product lines and smaller digital sets, Cove said, tend to be LCDs. Plasmas start at 37 inches and have their own advantages.

"If you and your family are going to be sitting 10 feet away from the screen and sit all around the room, you probably want to go plasma," Cove said. "It gives you a wider viewing angle. Wherever you sit in the room, it gives you the same picture. LCD gives you the best picture when you're right in front of it."

DLP sets also provide strong pictures but don't have the panoramic viewing angle of the plasma sets, which I think deliver the best overall picture. Panasonic lent me a 42-inch plasma for a few weeks before Christmas. Right off the truck, the set was beautiful, delivering rich, accurate color reproduction and images so clear during the Panthers' last football game that I almost felt like I could jump through the screen and into Seattle.

Plasma sets deliver better contrast than the other slim line sets, which makes colors look richer. LCD sets can't produce dark colors, especially black, as well. And with sports, plasmas look much better as LCDs can sometimes appear blurry because they can't flash pictures as fast as a plasma.

Now, the old rear projection sets, heavy and wide, still put out quite a good picture and are the most affordable sets. If you want to go past 50 inches, the costs for plasmas explode and you may want to consider the old rear projection unit. But know that rear projections are fast becoming a dinosaur in the industry. And there's one reason why.

"You can't hang it on the wall," Cove said, "and that's important to a lot of people."

What kind of set did you buy or are you thinking about buying? Let me know.

DirecTV adding TNT HD in time for All-Star Weekend

DirecTV hi-def users will get a new channel, TNT-HD, beginning Feb. 17. You'll find it on Channel 75 if you subscribe to the company's $10.99/mo HD package.

The 24/7 HD presentation of the TNT East Coast feed will offer live NBA games and NASCAR races; series; movies; and TNT Originals.

The DirecTV HD package includes ESPN HD, ESPN2 HD, Discovery HD Theater, HDNet, HDNet Movies and Universal HD. DirecTV customers with HD-enabled equipment can also receive HBO-HD and Showtime-HD if they subscribe to those premium movie packages.

TNT in HD is broadcast in 1080i 24 hours a day and uses Dolby Digital 5.1 surround sound. The station also presents all of its programming, including promotional content and commercials, in 16:9 wide-screen, giving viewers a consistent viewing experience.

There was a full page ad in USA Today this week which stated that DirecTV users could get the new channel in time for the NBA All-Star Weekend which will be presented in high definition.

Time Warner cable users with high definition service also get TNT-HD, which broadcasts NBA games all season in high definition.

Memory Chips linked to XBox 360 shortage?

Most popular videogame question in my inbox these days is "Why can't I find an XBox 360 yet?"

Microsoft promises more are coming, but our sister paper, the San Jose Mercury News, reports
that one reason Microsoft is having trouble is that a German company, Infineon Technologies, is having trouble making enough of the chips at the right speed for the game console.

Peter Moore, head of Microsoft's game division, wouldn't comment to the Mercury News about the memory chip shortage and blamed the lack of 360s on store shelves on component shortages. The good news is Moore said consumers can expect to see more of the units on store shelves next month.

Industry rumors run rampant of all types of component failures with the box, some causing it to overheat and others causing it to lose information. The 360 has more than 1,700 components in it. In a month-long test with an Xbox 360 last month, I didn't have any problems.

But whatever the problem is, Microsoft is really ruining what was a great strategy to bite into Sony's market share with its second gen Xbox console. Gamers should've been playing games right now, not waiting on units. And each week that goes by, Sony's $500 PS3 unit gets closer and closer.

It's due in the fall, hopefully in plentiful supply.

HDTV so clear you can read the fans T-shirts

Over the past few weeks, I’ve been testing a Panasonic 42-inch plasma high-definition television mated with the new Xbox 360 from Microsoft.

All I can say is “wow.”

Until you’ve watched the NFL playoffs, the Super Bowl, big-time college basketball and your favorite TV shows (“Surface,” “Smallville,” and “24”) in high definition, you haven’t watched TV. And until you’ve played the new Tiger Woods game in high def via the new Xbox, you haven’t really played video games.

I’m going to be writing a lot here about HD, particularly about what it is and how to get it. It’s amazing technology. But first, let’s myth-bust: to get high definition television, you must have a high definition set.

You may see “presented in high definition” across the bottom of your screen when a program comes on, but rest assured, your old floor model 25-inch can’t show HD. HD is a form of digital television that is so sharp, you can see individual hairs on people’s heads. You can see what fans have on in the stands at a basketball game.

True story: My son, Trey, asked me who were the Jackson 5 last week during a Philly 76er game on ESPN-HD.

“Why are you asking, son,” I said back.

“Because,” he said pointing, “that man behind the basket has a T-shirt with that name on it.”

Like I said, “Wow.”

And gaming on an HD set is amazing. Even the old Xbox looks better in HD. Some games were created to use a different form of digital TV, one that is not HD, but still trumps standard TV.

These “480P” games are created to fill the screens of these new HD sets that have rectangular screens – like a movie screen – instead of the old square jobs we’re used to. So your old NBA 2K5 will look better on an HD set than it does even on your non-HD 50-inch square job in the den right now.

But the new 360 game system is created to play all games in HD, and a new adapter coming this year will allow the system to play the upcoming HD-DVDs, a feature that is going to be included with the new PS3 system, which will set you back $500, or about the same as a modified 360 I’m guessing.

People will pay, though.

Playing video games in HD is almost like playing for the first time. It’ll take you a long time to get over the “I can’t believe this looks so good” thing. The grass in Tiger Woods PGA looks like real grass. Tiger looks almost like the real thing. The courses look more realistic. It just adds to the game. Makes it more intense. Game play itself isn’t changed much, and most of these new 360 titles are simply graphically upgraded ports of the stuff we’ve played.

But by summer, we’ll get second generation 360 games from folks like EA Sports and Visual Concepts and the like, and given the power of the new 360, I think we’ll see new tricks, too. My guess? HD gaming is going to help video games grab an even bigger share of America’s pop culture pie.

Tell me about your HD gaming experience. Click on the comments link below.

Welcome to a better world

First of all, welcome to my new video game/technology blog.

The column is moving online. For the 10 years I've been doing this, this column has run a lot of places in The Observer: in Mecklenburg Neighbors, in the business section, in local news and finally in the entertainment section.

I think we've finally found the right place for it here, online. I can get you all the video game news faster, as it's delivered to me, with no wait times. I'll be able to tell you about the latest technological advances faster, too. We'll talk about satellite vs. cable TV, we'll talk Ipod vs. MP3, we'll talk about Madden football vs., well, no one else can make official pro football games anymore.

But you get the idea.

Feel free to post responses, reviews or questions about games you've played, or if you want to be a bit more private, just send me an email.

I would love for this to become a bit of a community where we can come in and share what we know, give up a cheat code or a killer play in a sports game.

I'm excited about the new spot for the video games and I'm also excited because I can tell you about all the cool techo-gear I get to read about and get my hands on. You can help me by telling me what kind of stuff you're interested in and what kind of cool toys you've seen.

And last, be sure to check back often. I'll be posting a lot. News happens in the video game and technology industry fast, and on the internet here, we finally can keep up.